Identity Dynamics Among Left-Leaning, Politically Active Kurds in Germany: The Role of Perceived Injustice, Collective Efficacy, and Online/Offline Participation

Abstract

The current study highlights the multiplicity of Kurdish diasporic identity construction in relation to distant conflict, the Afrin conflict in particular. It first distinguishes between different reference points for identity construction: national Kurdish identity, ethnic Kurdish identity, and politicized Kurdish identity. Second, it explains diasporic identity construction by means of collective action variables: perceived injustice, perceived efficacy, and past online/offline participation. By means of a quantitative survey of members of the Kurdish diaspora in Germany (N = 94) and subsequent regression analyses, the findings show that past online/offline political participation represents a vital factor in the construction of a politicized Kurdish identity, while perceived injustice and perceived collective efficacy represent key predictors of identifying with a Kurdish national identity. Identifying with an ethnic Kurdish identity is not meaningfully explained by the chosen collective action predictors in this study. The study aims to connect diaspora communication and social psychology literatures by using the above-mentioned identity and collective action variables.